“My whole life, it is a run,” – said Dmitri Tcherniakov, Russian stage director – “A run with a goal. Sometimes I’m running and I’m gasping for air. Sometimes I run in happiness, sometimes I run in fear. And I want an opportunity to stop and look at things differently.”

I like how these words describe very difficult process of creating new production of Borodin’s “Prince Igor” on the Met stage – through constantly “running”, moving himself through ideas, decisions, opening new meanings in existing scenes; changing architecture of the Opera, adding new themes and interpretations of Libretto.

“One of the most serious and successful artists of his generations, Mr. Tcherniakov one of the Opera’s experimental thinkers, then, may also be its most radical realist.”

How does he work?

“You have to draw the audience in”, said Mr. Gelb, the company‘s general manager. And Mr. Tcherniakov “pulls” the audience in, using sometimes brave provocative methods that really work!

The opera “Prince Igor” really now is the hit of the season. Yesterday during the Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games in Sochi, I heard the melody “The Song of Polovecky’ girls” from “Prince Igor,” and it is not temporarily coincident! The music of this piece is really in the air everywhere!

But why I am writing now about new stage production in the Met? As Personal Trainer and Group Fitness Specialist I found something interesting in the way Mr. Tcherniakov work.

For example, how he is working on the boots sequence – first stage director spent several minutes sprawled out on the floor, looking intently on boots, second, he was handling the arrangement of the soldiers’ feet with the same attention, third, looking out for a tree-step entrance whose rhythm became more and more settled into naturalness.

Yes, I found the right word! Every movement I asking my clients to do is to settle into naturalness, and believe me, it is not an easy task!

Another method was very interesting to me, too – “He is working in such deep way that, very often, you need two or tree times to understand it. But if you get it, it is forever. And you are in love with him, because he gives you something special, something that you never felt before.” In my work with my clients, every moment I want to bring something special to them, something that I feel deep inside, what kind of movement or sequence of movements have to be done and exactly the way it have to be performed!

“Mr. Tcherniakov lives through his art,” He is all the characters onstage. He gives all his power to the singers…” I am trying to put all my power that is inside of me into people I am working with, too, and it really works!

In the end of the article Russian director said: “Everything I come up with I try to express solely through the artists on the stage…” I am reading these words, and in the next training sessions I will try to do the same – express my vision of movements through my clients’ exercise!

I can’t believe that reading article in Sunday Arts’ section would be so useful for me!

Today I can barely walk and ride to my home – train is not working, sidewalks are a complete mess and one snowstorm followed by another, lower temperature did not give people any relaxation... But! Why I was so interested in this article? In New York situation with drinking water are excellent, near my apartment - huge Reservoir with drinking water, nothing to worry about! I may take shower as long as I want, the water may be running all day through my faucets, electricity - the lights are on in every room in my 3-bedroom apartment in Bronx, garbage I have no time to separate right, because I am too busy with my own Business…Do you recognize yourself? You may say sure, it is true, but we are not having problem with drinking water in New York, it only concern California. Though I understand that cold snowy weather in New York is directly related to big Drought that now takes place in California and Nevada, Los Angeles and Sacramento. It is the terrible sigh of Global Warming, and if we continue with our habits and behaviors, we will face much more serious problem here in New York with water supply, just like in California.

I am continuing to read the article:

-The University of California Cooperative Extension held a drought survival session in Browns Valley…

- Farmers in Nevada…had given up on even planting…

- Farmers in California and New Mexico - forced to cell cattle!

- Pollution in the Los Angeles has returned to the dangerous level, the air is brown!

I don’t want that the air in New York become brown, or that beautiful Wave Hill have no water for gardening!

It also helps to conserve electricity, prepare recyclables right, help collecting trash bags on the street that are flying all over the Bronx! When I am running in Van Cortland Park, I always collecting flying bags in the forest and feeding birds near my apartment during such cold days as they have very hard time, too!

Two bicycle delivery men sued the Domino’s franchisee that employed them, accusing it of minimum wage and overtime violations. The names of these two men are Anatole Yameogo and Rodriguez Herrera. They are working for Domino’s pizza shop on East 89 Street in Manhattan. I remember Domino’s pizza shop between 74 and 75 St. and 1st Ave; I lived there 2 years ago. Delivery men are working very hard every day, often risking their lives; I don’t even mention the bad weather, when delivery men have to work in intolerable conditions.

But what that article reminded me of? Why is it important for me? This article raised my feeling that I was experiencing working for Bally Total Fitness a few years ago!

I reading newspaper: “Anatole Yameogo, remembers working from 10a.m. to 8p.m. one Saturday, but his pay stub said he worked just five hours that day.” Exactly the same happen to me, when I working many hours but… without any pay! Yes, it happen in our days, it happens in Brooklyn’s Bally Total Fitness, and Yes, I am women, immigrant, over 40, I don’t know what to do… So I decided to start my own business, when my family moved in Bronx.

I continued to reading the article that telling me that one worker, Mr. Rodriguez brought complaint to the State Department of Labor, but the Department did nothing!

In my mind again I saw the pictures how this workers working on 75 St put a lot of effort to deliver pizza on time…

Yes, while we are living in New York, we are often experiencing discrimination because of our age, nationality, gender, et cetera... And it is great that we have in New York very brave people who standing for their human rights to be and stay Human in New York! The names of these heroes again are– Anatole Yameogo and Carlos Rodriguez Herrera, also Karen Cacace, a lawyer for the Legal Aid Society, which delivered the case. … And I would like to say big Thank You to Bally Total Fitness that “helped” organize my own Mira-fitness.com business in Bronx!

Now I can believe that New Year really started! And it started very strong, with cold, wind and snow. I never saw it here before! So we have to be strong, too! Like real New Yorkers, resisting this harsh weather!

My attention was caught by an article in New York Times for December 14, 2013. The title of the article is “The Aging May Have Alternative to Giving up the Car Keys”, from First Business Page.

What happens when elderly people are sitting in the driving seat! Is it safe? How difficult is it for aging folks? Should this population stop driving completely, sit quietly at home and watch COSI TV? And why this topic became so important to me – Personal Trainer and Small Business Owner?

Author writing about technology and how it is supposes to help elderly people drive safely and with confidence:

“smart” headlights that adjust the range and intensity of light

alerts the driver with a beep or light to obstacles crossing behind or stopped in front the car,

a lane departure warning

contemplating a “silver’ car rating

vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure communication, allowing cars to “talk” to each other

Yes, a lot of technology is coming soon!

But is it enough? Other things are very important too, like special training for elderly people – improving their reflexes, flexibility and memory!

The Hartford and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Age Lab have a series of online videos demonstrating the exercises. Also AAA offers both self-rating form and a series of computer-based exercises that can help you test your physical flexibility and memory.

I myself developed Mira-Fitness Outdoor classes that are helping elderly people to improve their flexibility, alertness, quickness, sharpen their reflexes and improve memory! And cost for my outdoor classes is much lower, than mentioned in article $420 for an initial two-hour evaluation and $125 for each additional hour needed! I think it too much for elderly people! My Outdoor classes cost only $6 for full intensive hour of workout!

My attention this week was caught by the article from “Essence” magazine, written by Jeannine Amber. The name of the article intrigued me – “The new science of weight loss”. Good, it is very relevant to me, because I am working on it every day!

What factors are the most influential on the women health today? According to the Black Women’s Health Study (BWHS), conducted by researcher Fleda Mask Jackson, PhD, women in their mid-twenties are “cocooned in their communities, where they received support and validation. Then they transition in to workforce only to face discrimination and stressors of both racism and sexism…”We found a higher weight gain in women who had perceived the more racism, says Palmer, BWHS’s co-principal investigator. “What we are seeing is that the body’s response to the chronic stress of racism can lead to weight gain and obesity.” The author Jeannine Amber recommends to women to try getting involved within a group outside the work, through their church, sorority, gym or volunteer organization. It is true not for only African American women. A lot of women feel themselves out of society, angry at the society. The best way that really helps – start volunteering. I experienced this myself – I worked as volunteer in Coney Island Hospital in Pharmacy department and in the Lenox Hill Neighborhood Senior Center as Aerobic Instructor. This was the best time of my life, because I was working not for the money, but only for myself! And I feel less depressed because I have to leave my beautiful country. And it helps! I started to think about how to help Americans, and that distracted me from my pain, my problems!

Another topic was very interesting, too. According to Gary Taubes, founder of the Nutrition Science initiative (as he wrote in his book Good Calories, Bad Calories) Taubes states that a diet high in sugar and carbs is inherently more fattening than a diet of the same number of calories without the carbs. Obesity is not a problem of eating too much, it is a biological disorder, says Taubes. And explains, why! This was a discovery for me! Taubes maintains that “African Americans are especially sensitive to the effects of sugar and carbohydrates because these foods have been in their diets for less time than for people of European descent.” There is a theory that says that the newer something is in your environment, the greater the effect it is going to have on you, he explains. So, European populations that have been eating refined grains for 10,000 years would have been adapted to these. African-Americans, who were forcibly imported to the US 300 to 400 years ago, for the most part hadn’t had sugar in their diets before”. Now with this valuable knowledge I may help my clients more! And I think it could be applicable to Latin American people too. Native Americans didn’t have refined sugar in their diet, either! But what about me – I used to eat a lot of processed sugars, but maintain healthy weight – it is because my body was adapted to processed sugars! Thank you, magazine “Essence” – you really went ahead of many women’s magazines!

When I had got accomodated with this simle movement, I had incresed speed.My body position had been like I had trying to do squat, a little bit benting forward.One hour had run so quickly! I had realized, that I had returned to my "trainer's" activity.

3:30 PM - soup, potato salad, cofee.I had been ready for working with clients!

10:30AM - 12PM.I had visited New York Botanical Garden.Today had been "Train Show "Preview. It had been amazingly beautiful there and I had dreamed about - may be one day all Bronx will be looking exactly like NYBG today?

"Lead researcher Daniel Lieberman, professor of human evolutionary biology in Harvard, wrote that "forefoot and midfoot gaits were probably more common when humans run barefoot or in minimal shoes, and may protect the feet and lower limbs from impact-related injuries experienced by high percentage of runners""

3;00PM -I had preparing myself to the training sessions in the Park, where I had been working this morning.

I can not reach my clients, who have living in Yonkers and Riverdale, so, what to do?

First, I have to clean up mess after previous Hurricaine.From 9 AM to 12 PM I have grabbed ground belonging city (it was between 239 ST and Broadway.) City Parks workers had came twice, had said me "Thank You!" and had dissapearing in not known direction.After 3 hours I had spent in fresh air, I had decided to relax myself in standing nearby church "Visitation Parish",160 Van Cortlandt Park South Bronx.June, the lady, who have working there, had showing me beautifil fresk and mosaic.The Pastor have had spech, in which he had congratulated Re-Election Mr.Obama.

The snow had started fallen more and more...What to do if you can not reach clients - developing new exercise for them! I had put nice music - Flex /Romantic Style...Desde La esencia / and had start creating aerobic dance pattern.It had been very productive, the music had matching falling snow perfectly:

In my apartment very cold.I have sitting and watching news about terrible devastations and damages. "Foundation of a house in Seaside Heights that had been partially washed away...Two boys, 11 and 13, died in North Salem, when a tree crashed through the living room...9,000 residents in several states remain in rescue shelters..."

I have opened the today's New York Times:"Senator Charles E Schumer, Democrat of New York, said Wednesday, "We're going to pay a price for the change in climate." And Representative Jerrold Nadler, Democrat of Manhattan, echoed the consensus of local officials on Thursday, saying simply, "There will be a storm of this magnitude again." "

I had thinked about it.But I can not! And I had came in Van Cortlandt Park.The huge tree have been everywhere on the road, it had been looked like apokalypsis - like some creatures from another planet had been destroying our planet.And suddenly I had realized, that we are that creatures, that had trying to destroing our beatiful unique earth. Yes, it was us...

Yes, Mr Obama had been right, saying:"climate change was a threat to our children's future, and we owe it to them to do something about it."

This chili really had helped me to "survive in brutally cold apartment in Bronx"

November 2.I had invited two people from Bronx shelter to dinner.In their shelter no electricity, no food.On the table I had put chicken:( 4 chicken breasts, chicken broth, celery, potatoes, carrots on the bottom of a roasting pan.Chicken have to be rubbed under the skin by clove, dried sage, dried rosemary, 2 tbspoon of vodka) The smell had been terrible delisious, and my apartment had been warm and my guests had felt welcome and comfortable.

My fitness life started early as a semi-professional athlete in running and endurance development. I earned several levels of professional recognition in running, tried some gymnastics and took ballet classes. Later I mostly dedicated my life to work (I have BSc in Pharmacology) and family, raised three children. About four years ago I decided to become Fitness Instructor, first hand experiencing difficulties of getting back on track. I am immensely grateful to Fitness Coordinator of City of New York Parks & Recreation Nancy Klitsner, who inspired me to join and successfully complete Aerobics Leadership Training Program. To learn more, I decided to acquire National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM) Personal Trainer Certification, followed by Group Exercise Instructor Certification by Aerobics and Fitness Association of America (AFAA), Exercise and Nutrition Works Fitness Nutrition Specialist Certification. Now I am Personal Trainer at Bally Total Fitness, leading Strength and Stretch classes at Lenox Hill Neighborhood House, offering individual and small groups exercises at home and parks locations and developing tailored nutrition programs. I am proud to use my knowledge and experience to help people get fitter, develop healthy lifestyle, and raise confidence in them.